Feds say communities would take lead role in handling pandemic
By Peter Sachs / The Bulletin
WASHINGTON - Communities will have to shoulder the brunt of the responsibilities if a pandemic of avian flu ever strikes, the top federal health department official testified before U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith's committee on Thursday.
"There is no way a government can get to 5,000 communities at the same time," U.S. Health and Human Secretary Michael Leavitt told the Senate's Special Committee on Aging. "It's a highly local event."
Leavitt's message was consistent with a Bush administration plan released earlier this month for dealing with outbreaks of the deadly disease, which so far has stayed confined mainly to birds, but has killed 124 people worldwide.
As part of its plan, the Bush administration has directed $7.1 billion toward avian flu preparations. But Muriel DeLaVergne-Brown, a program manager in the Deschutes County Public Health Department, said the county only will receive $3,500 of that money. That's enough to buy about 320 specialized face masks at market prices, according to the maker of those masks, Las Vegas-based Emergency Filtration Products.
"We really have to look at other measures," DeLaVergne-Brown said. "What we're really trying to get out to people are the top things, which are good hand-washing, good hygiene and to cover your cough."
Leavitt's testimony was the first time he had appeared before Congress since the Bush plan was unveiled. Though Smith, R-Ore., asked some questions about the needs of seniors during a pandemic, the hearing covered preparations at all levels.
Avian flu, known in scientific communities as the virus strain H5N1, has not yet appeared in the United States. Earlier this week, six family members in a rural Indonesian village died from H5N1 after one member apparently contracted the disease from handling a bird at a market, the Associated Press reported. Investigators think it may be the first time the virus has spread in a chain through humans, though they have noted that does not mean that a pandemic is imminent.
Leavitt and the Bush administration advocate four major roles for the federal government in preparing for and dealing with a pandemic, all of which are already in place to varying degrees. The government should monitor international infection trends, develop vaccines, stockpile medications and supplies, and distribute information to states and communities, Leavitt said at the hearing.
DeLaVergne-Brown said since Hurricane Katrina, the county has reevaluated its expectations of the federal government in crisis situations.
"We have always been under the assumption that the federal government will step in and help when things are at their maximum," DeLaVergne-Brown said. But now, "we are not counting on that."
DeLaVergne-Brown said the county has been talking with a variety of community groups and health care providers, though it is just starting to address preparations that should be made in the private sector. While her department has looked into creating its own stockpiles of face masks and other supplies, not much has been done yet, she said.
Communities need to continue to put a high priority on developing plans for dealing with a local outbreak, Leavitt said.
During the hearing in Washington, Smith asked Leavitt, "Do you think local communities are taking this seriously?"
Leavitt replied, "I think we are clearly moving from the buzz phase to the busyness phase," though not every organization has done the advance planning that is needed, he added.
Cognizant of the difficulties in dealing with a pandemic, Leavitt highlighted a central paradox already facing many communities and the federal government.
"Anything you say in advance of a pandemic is alarmist," Leavitt said. "On the other hand, anything you do to prepare for it is insufficient."